County Fair Guide

The Oldest Fairs in Louisiana

Louisiana's oldest fair is the Tangipahoa Parish Fair, running since 1888. The Louisiana State Fair in Shreveport followed in 1906, with the Livingston Parish Fair (1937), Greater Baton Rouge State Fair (1965), and Cajun Heartland State Fair in Lafayette (1988) rounding out the state's oldest fairs. Here are Louisiana's fairs with the longest documented histories.

  1. 1
    Tangipahoa Parish FairAmite, Louisiana
    Est. 1888September

    Amite's Tangipahoa Parish Fair City is the oldest fair in Louisiana, established in 1888, and one of the oldest continuously operating fairs in the Deep South. It began in 1888 and has stayed a fixture of Louisiana agricultural life for more than a century. Held annually on the last weekend of September through the first weekend of October, this beloved fair is the centerpiece of life in Tangipahoa Parish each fall.

  2. 2
    Louisiana State FairShreveport, Louisiana
    Est. 1906October

    In Shreveport, the Louisiana State Fair is the flagship state fair of Louisiana, held annually since 1906 at the Louisiana State Fairgrounds in Caddo Parish. Since its 1906 founding, it's endured as a century-plus Louisiana agricultural tradition. This 11-day fair is the premier agricultural showcase and entertainment destination for north Louisiana and the greater ArkLaTex region, drawing hundreds of thousands of visitors each fall.

  3. 3
    Sabine Parish FairMany, Louisiana
    Est. 1910September

    Held annually in Many, the Sabine Parish Fair celebrates a northwest Louisiana parish on Toledo Bend Reservoir where the nation largest man-made reservoir on the Texas border provides extraordinary bass fishing, and where timber and poultry farming sustain communities in the longleaf pine hills.

  4. 4
    Livingston Parish FairLivingston, Louisiana
    Est. 1937October

    The Livingston Parish Fair, established in 1937 in the small town of Livingston, is one of southeast Louisiana's most beloved community fairs. The fair began in 1937 and has remained a community tradition ever since. Located about 30 miles east of Baton Rouge along I-12, the fair draws large crowds from across the fast-growing Livingston Parish corridor each October.

  5. 5
    Est. 1939January

    The St. Martin Parish 4-H and FFA Livestock Show is an 88-year-running youth livestock exhibition held at Breaux Bridge High School, drawing roughly 190+ animal entries in cattle, hogs, poultry, goats, sheep, and rabbits from parish 4-H and FFA members each January.

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